Is It Time For Brands To Dump Justin Bieber?

Justin Bieber, love him or hate him, has been a cash-making machine for brands that sell products adorned with his image. The multi-million-dollar Bieber empire includes stickers, bed sheets, toothbrushes, posters, and backpacks, among others. There’s little that he can’t sell. His Hallmark card collection was surprisingly popular among a demographic that typically doesn’t purchase greeting cards. His Girlfriend fragrance was the best-selling celebrity licensed scent in 2012.

Justin Bieber performs live in concert at Palacio de los Deportes de Madrid on March 14, 2013. (Photo credit: CURTO DE LA TORRE/AFP/Getty Images)

Bieberfever even infiltrated corporate America. In numerous conversations with brand executives who have deals with Bieber, only one toy maker expressed anything semi-negative in working with the pop star: When Bieber changed his hairstyle away from having bangs, the company was forced to pull the banged Bieber doll, and it took three months before dolls with the more updated style could hit store shelves. Other than that, everyone raved about his manners and professionalism.

Yet now, the love affair with both his fans and business executives appears to be in jeopardy. There are a growing number of cautionary Bieber tales bubbling up from corporate offices. Missed appointments, misguided brand extensions, lost or delayed product design approvals. There’s increasing concern that Bieber’s recent behavior — egocentric messages about Anne Frank, canceling or appearing late at his concerts, battling with paparazzi, and just generally acting like a clown — may destroy their merchandise cash cow. Moms aren’t willing to open their pocketbooks on behalf of badly behaving celebrities. One only needs to look at Miley Cyrus to see the truth in that sentiment. One licensee of Hannah Montana footwear says his “sales went over a cliff” immediately after Cyrus appeared semi-nude in a Vanity Fair layout.

Celebrities live and die by their fans. And on the fan side, Bieber’s appeal has declined significantly in light of his recent antics, according to market research firm E-Poll. Parents with children under 18 who say they “dislike” Bieber grew 6% and teens who dislike him grew 10% between May 2012 to March 2013.

Similarly, teens who think he is attractive has fallen 5%, his cuteness has dropped another 5%, and teens who think Bieber is rude quadrupled from 3% in May 2012 to 12% in March 2013. Plus, to put this in context, teens rate musicians an average of 3% on rudeness (Bieber’s at 12%) and an attractive rating of 20% (Bieber is 7%), reports E-Poll.

Parents, who oftentimes are the ones buying the merchandise, are no less harsh in their assessment. Those that feel Bieber is rude doubled from 4% to 8%, while his charm rating dropped from 12% to 6%. They also rate most musicians as a 3% on the rudeness scale, and 20% on an attractive scale.

Perhaps even more distressing to the singer, there’s a 20% jump among teens that would not recommend his music to friends or family members. A majority of parents (54%) also wouldn’t recommend Bieber tunes today to their friends and family, up from 49% who felt this way in May 2012.

With the back-to-school season fast approaching, brands and retailers are in the precarious position over whether to stick with Bieber or dump him in favor of the next big thing.

It’s not a simple decision. At issue are two separate but parallel battles: one is the limited lifespan of a teenage heartthrob, and the other is whether growing pains among a young celebrity affects merchandise sales. Each may be a separate issue, but both address the same concern: maximizing profit. “The big question is how fragile is the brand?” asks E-Poll’s Gerry Philpott. “If they are tied to a clean-cut wholesome celebrity, then I would advise them to look at this situation very carefully. If the brand is a little more edgy, they can take it. Bieber still maintains a high media presence and kids still follow him. Even if he is knocked down a few more times, [edgy brands] could survive that.”

Although opinions can turn in an instant, for now, it appears Bieber is being granted leeway by corporate executives. There’s no rush to exit their deals based on moral clauses, like there was with Lance Armstrong, Tiger Woods, and Oscar Pistorius. Retailers say they still plan to carry the same number of Bieber merchandise despite his recent antics.

At the same time, brands aren’t as excited about entering new or extending current deals with the pop star. This doesn’t have as much to do with his behavior than with his age. His reign as the top heartthrob appears to be over, as fickle teens and tweens move on to the hot property of the moment, One Direction, which is expected to dominate shelf space during the back-to-school shopping season.

There’s also concern about over whether his management team has enough experience and control to oversee this multi-million Bieber brand. “My first thought is where is his mother? My second thought is who is guiding him to make smarter decisions?” asks teen marketing analyst Donna Sabino of Ipsos MediaCT. “He is expected to do stupid things, but his handlers should know better. And since it’s obvious they don’t, if I am a brand, I am not going to invest my money in someone who is so unpredictable and uncontrollable. It’s not that big of a leap when you are canceling concerts and acting out to become the next [Lindsay] Lohan.”

Still, there are a few executives who believe Bieber’s behavior may benefit him in the long run. As he transitions from teen to adult, this bad boy edge makes him cooler among older fans. He is already shifting away from lunch boxes and school supplies to endorsing edgier brands, such as action sports apparel brand Neff.

Ultimately, for now, Bieber is just another cautionary tale of the challenges young stars experience growing up in the public eye. And he may just be fulfilling his destiny: The largest number of Americans envision Justin Bieber in celebrity rehab by age 30 (30%), rather than married and living quietly (18%), still playing to packed stadiums (13%), or fat and bald (12%), say Vanity Fair and CBS News.